An affordable option for building a cheap home library, 20th-century hardcover publishers book series included reprints of classics and publisher’s back catalog titles as well as newly commissioned titles. A few series dominated, such as Everyman’s Library and the Modern Library, but there are many others. These pages document the diversity of 20th-century reprint book series. Click on a series below for more information about the series.

New Beverly Edition

The Home Book Company (45 Vesey St., New York, NY) was in business from 1893 to 1896 and their New Beverly Edition series consisted of at least 70 titles of mostly classic fiction.

The company was organized by Frank F. Lovell and his brother Charles both having been involved with other late 19th century and early 20th-century reprint book companies. The Home Book Company was bankrupt by 1896 (it’s book printing plates seized as part of the bankruptcy proceedings).

This copy of Eliot’s Mill on the Floss (in this case, in two volumes) is probably indicative of many late 19th and early 20th-century reprint series books. Few of these survive with jackets and (as with this copy) the cardboard box that came with the two-volume set. The books are smaller in format (12mo or 16mo) with a decorative binding printed on mediocre paper and sold for a low price (in this case, .35 cents).

The jackets have a bit of frilly decoration but are very minimalist in design (and meant to be discarded). There is no price or series number information on the front of the jacket or jacket spine.

The back of the jacket describes the series and its enviable attributes. The price per volume is .35 cents. Seventy titles are detailed in the list on the jacket back.

The bookbinding is cloth, the decorations mimic the design on the jacket. The Series name is included on the book spine.

The title page of the book is below; there is no copyright information in the book.

The jacket of the 2nd volume is the same as the first except for the Volume II indication.